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Big 12 Football Conference Standings Prediction for the 2025 Season

Originally posted on The Forkball
By Tyla Wright Kosmicki | Last updated Aug 19, 2025 3:31 PM ET

The Big 12 became interesting last year with the final teams joining the conference, which brought a shakeup. The conference rankings had looked final and set until Kansas went on a run to beat the top four teams in the conference in the final weeks, setting up an interesting tiebreaker. Arizona State went on to win the conference championship and set up its destiny for the college football playoffs. Below are my predictions for the conference this season when the final game of the regular season goes final. I will talk about major wins and also major upsets. I will not be predicting every game.

1. Iowa State 11-1

Iowa State will win the conference and tie with West Virginia for wins. They will fight for the conference championship and a spot in the college football playoffs. Iowa State with winning the conference their major win will be Oklahoma State and Iowa due to their rivalry with them. Not many have them fighting very hard after last season, but I think this year they will turn it around.

2. West Virginia 11-1

West Virginia will be the dark horse this year and complete its season and just have a couple of upsets, and make teams shake in their cleats every game. Their major win will be BYU I know they beat them last year, but after the season the Cougars had, this will be a big win for most teams. They will also go on to have their major upset that will be Texas Tech because the Red Raiders are always a tough team to beat, so this will be a good win for them and a huge confidence booster.

3. Arizona State 10-2

The Sun Devils will be third this season after winning it all last year in the Big 12, and this is due to some major departures. They still have it in them to be third in the conference. Their major wins will be Texas Tech and Arizona. Those two wins will be great and also hard-fought.

4. Texas Tech 10-2

Texas Tech will be the team to win 10 games and will have two hard-fought losses. Their major win will be BYU this year, and that will be a hard-fought win for them against the Cougars. The Red Raiders will be another team that will complete their year and not stop fighting halfway through.

5. BYU 10-2

BYU will have another big year in the Big 12, and they will do it without Jake Retzlaff because he was just one piece of the puzzle in that 11-win season for the Cougars. The Cougars will have one big win and one big upset. The big win will be Utah at home against the Utes in the sea of Blue. Their major upset will be Iowa State, just because the Cyclones could win the conference and be hard for the Cougars to handle.

6. Oklahoma State 9-3

The Sooners will bounce back this season and come in sixth in the conference. Their major win will be Kansas State, which, if most think about it, isn’t too big, but it is for the original Big 12 teams before 2024. These two teams are good at going back and forth from season to season.

7. Kansas State 7-5

Kansas State will be the team to upset and get those major wins from, because some have them winning the conference, and some have them being the team to beat. Their only big win this season will be Kansas, which is an in-state rivalry and a big game for the Big 12.

8. Houston 7-5

Houston will have a hard-fought seven wins this season, and their big win will be against TCU. Yes, I have TCU being a bottom-half conference team, but that is due to the caliber of their schedule. Houston will get their big win.

9. Arizona 6-6

The Wildcats will be a six-win team this season. This is an accomplishment for them with the seasons they have been having. Their major win will be Utah, which again isn’t much, but it will be something for Arizona.

10. Cincinnati 5-7

Cincinnati will be a fun team to watch this year and one that will fight for their wins this year that their fans will savor during all five of them. Their major upset will be TCU, and that is because Cincinnati is a newer team, and to beat an original is always a great day.

11. TCU 5-7

TCU will be another bottom-of-the-conference team to beat and a fun team to watch. Their big win will be Kansas State and another original Big 12 conference upset.

12. Colorado 4-8

Colorado was never a great team, and the big team last year was an exception, but with the big names now fighting for a spot in the NFL, they will go back to being a mediocre team. Their big win will be Houston because those three other wins will be bottom of the conference wins.

13. Baylor 4-8

The Baylor Bears will spend another season at the bottom, unlike what the analysts say they won’t be. Their major win was also Utah because when Utah entered the conference, they had been predicted to be a top team and just didn’t have the team or the coaching to compete at the Big 12 level.

14. UCF 4-8

UCF will have another struggle bus season since entering the Big 12. When they were invited, it made sense, but since then, they just haven’t proven they were worth the pick up. Their big win will be Cincinnati, because for them

15. Utah 3-9

The Utes have not shown that they will come out of the bottom of the conference since they left the Pac-12. That conference isn’t built like conferences in the Midwest and South are built. Their major win will be Colorado, and it will be interesting because it will come down to who can put on a bigger show on the defense that week.

16. Kansas 2-10

Kansas will be the last team in the Big 12 unless they pull off some major upsets like they did last year. Their major win also includes Utah because, since they have entered the Big 12, no one can stop talking about how they could win the conference.

This article first appeared on The Forkball and was syndicated with permission.

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